Hat



J.. 12, 1937. E. vv. BULLARD HAT Filed April 2, 1934 INVENTOR.

/7//v5` ATTORNEY ParentalA iz, 1937 atomes:

PATENT vfol-Fics signor-by' mesne assignments to E. D.

Bullard Company, San Francisco, Calif.. a. corporation or california Application Aprile, 1934, sei-mino; 5118,6'51

-cciaima (cra- 181) My invention relates to hats, and more partie-- ularly to safety hats.

provide a hat having an adjustable sweat band structure so that a single hat may be fitted to different head sizes.

Another object of my invention is to provide a hat of the character described in which the adjustability is effected by interchangeable sweat bands so that. an old hat may be rendered new, from the standpoint of a subsequent wearer, by merely providing a new band.

A further object of my invention is to provide an interchangeable sweat band structure of rigid and compact construction, and in which a new band may be quickly and easily substituted for an old one.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the following description of my invention. It is to be understood that I do not limit myself to this disclosure of species of my invention, as I may adopt variant embodiments thereof within the scope of the claims.

Referring to the drawing:

Figurel is a side view, partly in section and partly in elevation, showing a. safety hat embodying the improvements of my invention; and

Figure 2 is a bottom view of the same.

Figure 3 is a sectional view showing details of the sweat band mounting.

In terms of broad inclusion, the hat of my invention comprises a crown, a sweat band, and means for detachably connecting the band to the crown. In order to accommodate bands of different sizes, a support adjustable to and from the band is preferably provided for mounting the band on the crown. By a detachable connection I mean to include such means for operatively connecting parts into operative relation, as may be readily disconnected or severed by ordinary manipulation of the fingers.

In greater detail, and referring particularly to the drawing, the improvements embodying" my invention are -shown in conjunction with a particular type of safety hat construction. It is understood however that the details of the general hat structure are merely for purposes of illustration and thatmy improvements may be incorporated in other types of hat construction. The headgear which I have chosen for purposes of illustration comprises a. dome-shaped upper crown section 2 formed from a single sheet of relatively thin hard compacted fibrous material. This material is light enough to make the hat comfortable for wearing, and still possesses surf cient rigidity and strength to protect the wearer It is among the objects of my invention to against injuryv fromfalling objects. l The lower -portion of the crown comprisesa ring 3, preferably of *fibrous material similar 5 'to'thatused for the upper, crown section, and

, section to hold the latter in shape. A brim 6 is also provided and is secured to the retaining ring 10 3 by suitable means, as by the stitching 1. Both the lower edge of the retaining ring and the outer edge of the brim are preferably bound by strips 8 of a suitable flexible material.

A waterproof cover 9 is provided over the crown sections 2 and 3 and preferably extends downwardly to overlap the upper portion of the brim 6. 'I'his cover preferably comprises one or more sheets of fabric united to the crown structure by a waterproof cement saturating the cover and at the same time adhesively uniting it to the crown. A lining for supporting the hat on the head of the wearer is provided by a plurality of straps II. These straps, which are preferably pf strong fabric, may conveniently be four in number, 25 and are spaced about the periphery of the crown with their lower ends caught between the upper crown section and retaining ring and held by the stitching I. The upper ends of the lining straps II are preferably secured together by means of a tie cord I2 passing through loops formed in the ends of the straps.

My interchangeable sweat band construction, as incorporated in the type of hat just described, 3- comprises a sweat band I3 preferably formed by a pair of relatively stiff reenforcing rings I4 and I6 suitably secured together and covered by suitable fabric II. The band is positioned inside the crown adjacent the retaining ring. 3, is supported by a plurality of tabs I 8 fastened to the crown andV depending between the ba'nd and retaining ring. As best shown in Figure 3, the upper endsof these tabs are preferably also caught between the upper crown section 2 and the retaining ring 4f 3 and secured by the stitching 4.

The sweat band I3 is detachably connected'to the lower ends of the supporting tabs I8 by suitable releasable fasteners, such as the snap fasteners I9. The portion of the fastener on the sweat band is positioned adjacent the lower portions of the band, and is preferably mounted on the outer reenforcing ring I6 only, as clearly shown in Figure 3, so that the inner reenforcing ring I4 provides a backing for the fastener and 55 wearers head.

The supporting tabs I8, of which four are .shown spaced about the periphery of the crown,

are preferably of a relatively stiff flexible material, such as leather, so that they will support the weight of the hat and at the same time be adjustable toward and away from the sweat band to accommodate different sizes of the latter. The stiffness of the supporting tabs, .together with the rigid character of the sweat band, provides a structure which feels comfortable and rigid on a wearers head. When it is desirable to change the size of the hat, it is only necessary to unsnap the fasteners I9 and remove the sweat band. Another band chosen to the size of the wearers yhead may then be inserted in the hat and the fasteners I9 snapped to lock the band in place.

It is to be noted that the supportinggtabs I8 and fasteners I9 lie in the space, between the sweat band and the retaining ring. This free suspension system, in conjunction with the interposedbacking plate I4 of the sweat. band, eliminates any possibility of lumps formingin the band at the fasteners I9. Such lumps would be uncomfortable to the wearer and consequently every precaution is taken in the design of the structure to avoid them. Of course, it is understood that when a band smaller than that shown in Figure 3 is inserted in the hat the supporting tabs I8 are swung inwardly from the position shown in order to snap the fasteners. This ad'- justable feature of these supporting tabs therefore permits the inclusion of various sized sweat bands.

'Ihe interchangeable sweat band feature of my improved hat construction is not only important because it permits a given hat to be fitted to various head sizes, but also because a used hat may be fitted to subsequent users without offending ones preference for a personal hat". Both of these features are specially pertinent in large corporations where it becomes highly desirable to fit subsequent workers with the hats of previous workmen.

I claim:

1. A hat comprising an upper crown section, a

retaining ring encircling the lower edge of said upper section, a sweat band lying within vthe crown adjacent its lower ring section, a supporting tab positioned with its upper end between the upper crown section and ring and with its lower enddepending between the band and ring, means for fastening the upper crown section, supporting tab and retaining ,ring together, and releasable fastening means forconnecting the band to the lower end of the supporting tab. 2. A hat comprising an upper crown section, a retaining ring encircling the lower edge of said upper section, a sweat band lying within the crown adjacent its lower ring section, a supporting tab positioned with its upper end A between the upper crown section and ring and with its lowery end depending between the band and ring, stitching for fastening the upper crown section, supporting tab and retaining ring together. and releasable fastening means for connecting the band to the lower end of the supporting tab. 3. A hat comprising an upper crown section, a

retaining lring adjacent the lower edge of said "upper section, a sweat band, a supporting tab positioned withan end adjacent the junction betweenthe crown section and ring, means for fastening the crown section, supporting tab and retaimng ring together, and releasable fastening means for connecting the band to the supporting tab.

.4., A hat comprising van upper crown section, a ring adjacent the lower edge of said crown section, a liner for supporting the crown on the wearers head and having a portion between the upper crown section and ring, a sweat band separate from the liner, a supporting tab having' a portion also between the crown section and ring, means for fastening the crown section, liner, supporting 'tab and ring together, and means for fastening the sweat band to the supporting tab.

5. A hat comprising an upper crown section, a ring adjacent the lower edge of said'crown section, a. liner for supporting the crown on the wearers head and havinga portion between the upper crown section and ring, a sweat band separate from theliner, a supporting tab having a portion also between the crown section and ring, means for fastening the crown section, liner, supporting tab and ring together, ,and means for detachably connecting the sweat band to the supporting tab. l

6. A hat comprising an upper crown section, a ring adjacent the lower edge of said crown section, a liner for supporting the crown on the wearers head and having a portion lyingadjacent the junction of the crown section and ring, a sweat band separate from the liner, a supporting tab also lying adjacent the junction of the crown section and liner, means for fastening the crown section, liner, supporting tab and ring together, and means for fastening the sweat band to the supporting tab.

EDWARD W. BULLARD. 

